This is a glittering adventure set in India at the height of the British Raj. The New York Times compared this book to Kipling's Kim and called it a gorgeous entertainment. Of this early work, published when he was in his early twenties, Patrick O'Brian writes in a foreword: In the writing of the book I learnt the rudiments of my calling: but more than that, it opened a well of joy that has not yet run dry.

The story is about a young mahout, or elephant handler, his childhood and life in India, and his relationship and adventures with elephants. As a boy, Hussein falls in love with a beautiful and elusive girl, Sashiya, and arranges for another of her suitors to be murdered with a fakir's curse. The dead man's relatives vow vengeance. Hussein escapes and his adventures begin: snake-charming, sword-fighting, spying, stealing a fortune, and returning triumphantly to claim his bride. All of this is set against an evocatively exotic India, full of bazaars, temples, and beautiful women, despite the fact that O'Brian had never been to the East when he wrote the story.

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Listener Opinions

Kathy | 9/25/2013

" Sort of convoluted, and the hero might have been more sympathetic if he didn't keep accidentally killing people. Well , when you're beating the crap out of them and they die it's not entirely an accident. The elephant was pretty cool. "

" A fun romp about a boy and his elephant. And who doesn't love a novel about an elephant? Especially one written by Patrick O'Brian. "

Rebecca | 1/27/2011

" Wonderfully written and a beautiful story "

Brittany | 9/18/2008

" A fun romp about a boy and his elephant. And who doesn't love a novel about an elephant? Especially one written by Patrick O'Brian.
"

Kathy | 7/7/2008

" Sort of convoluted, and the hero might have been more sympathetic if he didn't keep accidentally killing people. Well , when you're beating the crap out of them and they die it's not entirely an accident. The elephant was pretty cool.
"

Other Titles by Patrick O’Brian:

About the Author

Patrick O’Brian (1914–2000) was born Richard Patrick Russ in England. During the Second World War, he and his wife were involved in British secret service activities. After the war, he changed his name to Patrick O’Brian and began his career as a novelist, biographer, and translator. He is the author of the acclaimed Aubrey-Maturin tales and the biographer of Joseph Banks and Picasso. In 1995 he was the first recipient of the Heywood Hill Prize for a lifetime’s contribution to literature. In the same year he was awarded the CBE. In 1997 he received an honorary doctorate of letters from Trinity College, Dublin.

About the Narrator

John Lee, a stage actor and writer and a coproducer of feature films, has narrated more than one hundred audiobooks of every conceivable genre, earning some three dozen Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award.

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